Editorial: Our endorsement season begins for April 2 elections

For weeks now, we have been reviewing candidates in the upcoming local elections.

In so many ways, it's been a reaffirming experience.

Let us tell you: Despite the rare shenanigans, occasional bickering and frequent differences in viewpoint, there are more good candidates running across the suburbs than there are seats for them to occupy.

With few exceptions, our local governments are overseen by capable, well-intended, reasonable and intelligent people who exemplify good citizenship.

And that's true also for most of the challengers who are competing against them.

Is ego involved? Sure, no doubt to a degree. Self-interest or vested interest? Yes, from time to time.

But for the most part, these are people who want to give back to the community and who put in the time to study the issues and to serve.

Across the suburbs, the candidates still are disproportionately white, still tend to be more male than female and tilt older than the general population.

But there are signs too that the demographics of the candidates are slowly starting to broaden.

Women may not be proportionately represented yet - particularly in mayoral races - but they're not anomalies on the ballot anymore either. A lot of women are running.

Also encouraging, this year's suburban ballots have a few more faces of color, some representation of young people.

There is a long way to go to provide for a diversity of candidates that matches the diversity of the suburban population.

But the April 2 election suggests some improvement, even if it's far from enough. We can see that as a glass half empty or half full, and we choose to see it as half full.

On Tuesday, when most of the metropolitan news media will be focused on the Chicago mayoral race - and rightly so; it is a significant election that will significantly affect the suburbs even if we have no votes in it - we will begin our endorsements in the local races that affect the lives of suburbanites most - are municipal, school, park and library board races.

We have devoted ourselves tirelessly to this obligation, as we said at the beginning, for many weeks.

Our recommendations will reflect our best judgment. But that doesn't mean they're perfect.

We ask that you to consider them as one factor in your decision-making, whether you vote early or wait until the April 2 Election Day itself.

But we hope it is only one factor. Ideally, it is one ingredient in an energetic research you, as a concerned and responsible citizen, conduct on the issues and the candidates.